Manchester United set to break through £500m barrier

Manchester United are set to become the first club to break through the £500m barrier after reporting record first quarter results of £123m.  Annual revenues should be in the region of £500m-£510m.

The return to the Champions League, and sales of the new Adidas 2015-16 shirt, contributed to revenues that were up by 39 per cent.

However, profits declined from £8.7m in the same period last year to £5m.   This reflected losses of £7.4m on player trading.

Static turnover at Charlton but club under threat

Charlton Athletic owner Roland Duchatelet is far from popular with fans of the South-East London club. Yesterday he authorised the sacking of the third manager from his European ‘network’, Guy Luzon. Charlton are currently in the relegation positions in the Championship.

Good progress at Darlington

Volunteer run Darlington are making good progress with turnover up 18 per cent at £341,000.   All debts have been cleared and there is around £300,000 in the bank.   However, more help is needed from a wider range of volunteers.

One disappointment is that the club has not moved backed to Darlington and continues to play at Bishops Auckland.  Negotiations for a ground share at Darlington RFC continue.

Maidstone’s success story

The latest financial results from Maidstone United show a clear success story.   Turnover is up to £1.36m and profits are £245,000.   Admittedly, a FA Cup run helped these figures.

Nevertheless, the underlying story is a strong one.   Wages account for less than 20 per cent of turnover, with funds being put into expanding the capacity of he stadium with its 3G pitch.   Attendances and season ticket sales are up.

Arsenal laughing all the way to the bank

Is it better to have plenty of money in the bank or use that money to enhance performance on the pitch? That is the eternal dilemma at Arsenal and it is one that continues to exasperate the clubs’ fans.  One comment after the latest financial results was that they had produced at least one good result this week.